The first MOU Field Trip of the season occured (mostly) in Rock County this weekend and was a great success! We had a comfortable group of six eager birders and spent a full day in the field on Saturday despite some early rain. Unfortunately, we got fogged out for the most part on Sunday Morning. The tally added up to 91 species for the weekend.
Highlights included: 5 Swainson's Hawk - throughout Rock County 2 Loggerhead Shrikes - on Co. Rd. 4 west of Luverne 5 Great-tailed Grackles - back at Hills Sewage Ponds 1 Lincoln's Sparrow - early 1 Solitary Sandpiper - early 3 Gray Partridge - near Blue Mounds 1 Hybird Pipilo Sp. - Split Rock Creek SP - singing Spotted song, but showed a strong white Primary Patch Sparrows were plentiful, including a couple Harris's, Swamp, and numerous Vesper. Shorebirds were lacking, but the lingering Waterfowl and Raptors more than made up for it. We even had three species of owls including a Long-eared Owl near Luverne. A full species list will be available at my website. I'd like to thank all those that came along, as well as Bob Dunlap for co-leading, as the trip would not have been nearly as successful without him! The next trip is May 7th around Mille Lacs, which will be lead by Kim Risen. It's a quick one day tour around the lake and possibly Rice Lake NWR, with a chance for lots of birds. If you're interested in signing please send me an email. Good Birding! Tom Auer --=20 www.d.umn.edu/~auer0009
